This blog is dedicated to service members and veterans who, like me, never realized the implications of their military training.
The military taught us how to Armor Up for war, this blog can help you Armor Down to thrive as a civilian.

NewYears IED

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Eight Years and a Wake-Up

The morning of my first day in the Army I woke up shivering under an AC vent. I had been shoved into a barracks without blankets or a pillow and told to find a cot and sleep.

Fat chance.

I shivered.

I awoke to screaming. I lost my identity to a haircut and a uniform.

To erase my mind the Army worked my body.

As a civilian I was weak, unable to pass the first PT test. But I wanted to be apart of something bigger so I worked my ass off and passed the test.

Team was bigger so I trained.

Army was bigger so I suffered in silence.

America was bigger so I ignored the pain.

The cause we were needed for was bigger so I swallowed my fear.

As moments passed I awoke a soldier, fortified by suffering.

The fact that I could do it filled me with pride. The fact that I belonged gave me purpose.

I am a soldier.

I am a soldier.

I am a soldier at war.

Like a fuckin fish to water what would I rather be?

Humping armor, dodging IEDs and snipers, God must truely find my path righteous......why else did I make it through.

The training, thank you for the training.

The toughness, thank you for the toughness.

The team,thank you for the team.

The Army,thank you for the Army.

The Cause,thank you for the cause.

I am yours.

Eight years and a wake up, now what?

Oak seeds grow into Oak trees. Apple seeds grow into apple trees.

Soldiers grow into.........

It took me a while to realize that the Army does not care. The Army taught me to care about it but ultimately the Army can't care about me. The Army will always come before the soldier.

If you hadn't noticed the Army is dropping soldiers like flies. Remember when they were paying any and everybody to join? Now you can't join if you have tattoos on your forearms or shins.

The Army doesn't want me anymore. The identity, the purpose, was a dream.

King, Wake Up.

"I Am" AFRAID.

The Army gave me training, armor and a team to handle the fear but now as a civilian I am on my own.......

Wait a minute, Am I?

Made in the Image and likeness of My CreatorBIGGER

Father, Son, Holy SpiritBIGGER

Eternal soulBIGGER

What does soul grow into?

When people witnessed the way Buddha was so chill, wise, and even, they didn't ask him who he was, they asked him what he was?

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Armor Down website

About Me

Regardless of branch, we service members were trained from day one that being hyper-vigilance and putting the mission first meant the difference between life and death.
Down range these fundamentals are force multipliers for the military, but back home they can contribute to dis-ease for the individual.
I developed the training principles of Armor Down by dedicating 114 weeks of my life to the study of The Art of Peace (AOP), the practice of Mindfulness to tame my hyper vigilant mind and the use of exercise to re-train my mind to listen to my body instead of ignore it. This Blog represents the first example of how a service member can use the AOP as a path to thriving as a civilian.